Verbatim
by theroyalseabird
Summary: "Can you promise me you will stay here?" he spoke, his voice just a whisper in her ear. Estrein closed her eyes, shivering sightly but nevertheless she nodded her head. "Yes." / Estrein, a half-elf woman traveled there and back again, finding love, loss and evil on the way.
1. Prologue

**Prologue…**

The scene before her was a blur. A sea of dead men, dwarves, orcs. Her hands were stained with dried blood. Her hair, hanging like rat tails, discoloured as a bright red shade instead of the comforting white one. She looked about her, standing in the middle of the grounds, where death hung about like a bee to a flower. There was a distant muffled voice somewhere far off.

Estrein turned to look. A familiar figure was racing towards her, catching her just as the exhausted girl collapsed to her knees. She looked up into his eyes, blinking a few times to focus on his features.  
"Estrein you must come… its Thorin – " the rest of that sentence remained cut off. Estreins mind swirled into a dark vortex and her eyes shut. Her limp frame falling into his arms.

* * *

 _ **I know I have labelled this as Lord of the Rings, but I am currently on the Hobbit part of the tale and doesnt allow for me to post two categories. Struggles! But please bear with me while I work on the first chapter which is to come shortly... - Royal  
**_


	2. Chapter One, Mountains

**Chapter One, Mountains…**

For not the first time since she left the comfort and safety of Rivendell, Estrein found herself wondering why. The figure of the half human, and half elf girl turned around to look behind her shoulder. The valley lay below, safely hidden by passages, and strictly protected by skilled guardsmen.  
Gandalf's voice rang loud in her ears. The slight point at the tip, indicating the elven blood running through her veins. "This quest needs you Estrein. They will not succeed without your help. Your father would have wished it this way."

Estrein closed her eyes, willing to turn her head away from the home which housed her since she was born. Once her icy blue eyes were open again, Estrein stepped forward, hoping to set her eyes upon her home once more.  
"You didn't have to come" a voice spoke to her right. Estrein looked down, smiling gently at the kind look of the dwarf who walked beside her. Black hair and beard, clearly much younger than the majority of his companions.

"Gandalf wished me to come Kili" Estrein answered, looking forwards. The dwarf beside her nodded his head, moving alongside, in silence. "Besides, a bit of fresh air never done anyone any harm. Right?" said the girl.  
Kilis lips played a sense of a smile at the edge.

It had been a while since Estrein stepped out of the comforting lands of Rivendell. The land beyond terrified her enough, that she was hesitant to leave it any time of the day without the company of another elf beside her. However, Gandalf's words were truthful. There was only so much Estrein would accomplish, with her prolonged life if she stayed and never went out there into the Blue.

Estrein argued, saying Rivendell was always enough for her. There she had friends, a family, and she felt happy. But nevertheless, Gandalf had good reasoning, and the white haired Estrein found herself trudging alongside dwarves on their extraordinary quest.

As the mountains grew higher, and the paths grew steeper and slipper, the days grew darker. Estrein had positioned herself at the beginning of the party, by Thorins side. They occasionally exchanged a few words, but otherwise Thorins party walked in silence, preferring to not disturb the silence.  
One afternoon, the day was increasingly worse than any of the others. Estrein huddled underneath her hood, her snow white hair tucked underneath, yet somehow completely soaked through.

Small drips of water were cascading down her back, sending an eternal shiver through her body. Estrein brushed rain from her eyes, blinking and trying to focus through the stormy night. She stepped forward, slipping on a loose stone which went hurdling down below. Her hands reached for the stone wall beside her, fingers digging into wet mud, and scraping against sharp edges of the mountain.

A steady and firm hand lay rest on Estreins waist. Securing her to the safety of the mountain. "We must find shelter!" Thorin roared over the loud wind. Estrein blinked the drips away once more, her hand catching against some rocks before her, and the half elf moved forward.  
"Look out!" Dwalin yelled. Estrein looked up, her heart racing as the image of the boulder flying at the mountain above their heads came into view. She shrieked, pressing her body against the wall of the mountain again and covering her head with her hands. The boulder smashed into the mountain, shattering into smaller rocks and raining down on top of them.

"This is no thunderstorm. It's a thunder battle!" came the sound of Balins voice. Estrein looked forwards, as the shadows of two stone giants came into view. Their bodies were made entirely of stone, and they seemed to be hurdling parts of the mountain at each other.  
"Oh bless me. The legends are true!" Bofur cried. "Giants! Stone giants!"  
"Take cover you fool!" Thorin ordered. Estrein gasped as the mountain around them began to move. She swayed sideways, clutching tightly to a ridge from the mountain, her eyes closed from fear. There were the muffled voices from her fellow companions, all shouting in fear and surprise at the new events. When the half elves eyes were open again, the second half of their party was stuck on the pathway of another part of the mountain.

"Estrein! Move!" Thorin yelled, giving the petrified girl a slight push forwards. Estrein jumped, but her instincts began to kick in and the girl's feet rushed forward, onto a safer part of the mountain which did not move. The dwarves jumped onto the safely steady mountain, spinning around to watch the fate of the rest of their group.  
Estreins eyes locked with the hobbits, watching as the part of the mountain which they were on fell straight into the Misty Mountain. "No!" she screamed. Stumbling over her own feet, the girl ran forwards until the pile of dwarves came into view. They moved, and talked. They were alive.

"It's alright! Were alive!" one of them called, pushing Bomburs frame off. Estrein laughed incredulously, moving forward to help them get back onto their feet.  
"Where's the hobbit?! Where's Bilbo?" Bofur yelled.  
"Help!" came the meek voice of the hobbit who was hanging over the edge. The girls mouth went dry as she watched Thorin grab onto the edge of the mountain, swinging from it and raising the poor hobbit to his feet. Estrein bounded forwards to help, taking hold of the fur on Thorins coat and dragging the dwarf king up onto the mountain.

"I thought we lost our burglar" Bofur breathed, patting Bilbos small back.

"He's been lost ever since he left home. He should never have come. He has no place among us" Thorin growled. Estrein frowned, stumbling to get onto her feet and stand up for the hobbit before her intentions of speaking were interrupted.  
"Here!"

The shelter was dry and safe enough. Thorin walked to the back of it, as Bofur settled beside a pile of sticks, ready to start a fire. However, Thorin ordered it otherwise stating starting a fire in these parts was much too dangerous. The dwarves took off their wet clothes and exchanged them for dry ones, ordering Estrein to look away while they did so. Meanwhile the female changed under her cape, exchanging her soaking night blue shirt and trousers for forest green ones. Her cape, made from the finest silks in Rivendell brushed all water from it and remained dry.

As the night wore in, Estrein lay in between the groups of dwarves. Her eyes were closed attempting to sleep but the slim escape the group made from death still hung on her mind. She knew, she risked her life when leaving Rivendell, but the thing which bothered the half elf girl the most was the sheer strength and determination it was taking for the group to reach their home. It was almost as though Thorin was being drawn by something into the mountain, and he wasn't ready to give in and give up. Her heart rate slowed, and her mind relaxed more at the thought of Rivdendell.

Warm fires, hot food, and the most important thing, a dry and comfortable bed. Curse Gandalf for making her go on this rotten journey. Just as Estrein was about to succumb into sleep, Thorins loud bark woke her up, startling the elven girl. The feeling of startled fear was quickly replaced by the feeling of falling and Estrein closed her eyes, her mouth open into a loud and shrill scream.


	3. Chapter Two, Goblin King

**Chapter Two, Goblin King...**

The collision between the hard rock ground and her body sent the air from her lungs. Estrein moaned, attempting to lift herself from the stone cold ground but to not avail. Her eyes opened, and she took in one short breath before the familiar shrieks of goblins sent a shivering jolt through her spine. They carried whips, which they used to pick the girl and the dwarves up to their feet. And then, whipping once more to make them run forward.  
It was a confusing journey, over bridges and for what seemed the one thousandth left turn. But once the goblins stopped ridding them forwards, it was no better than being on the way. Estreins eyes fell onto a large cavern, filled to the brim with screaming goblins.

"Well, what have we here?" there came a voice unlike the others. Estreins heart seemed to freeze at the mere sound of it. Her icy blue eyes faced, startled, a giant of a goblin. The Goblin King.

"Dwarves your malevolence."

Estreins heart beat frantically. They were completely surrounded, from each end of the cave with goblins. Their weapons had been stripped off them, if she looked down, Estrein could still see her bow and quiver of arrows lying in the pile with the rest of the dwarves swords.  
"But what's this…" the Goblin King spoke. Estreins heart raced momentarily before she raised her eyes to look up at the creature. The two beady like lamps were turned to stare directly at her. The half elf felt her heart race faster, each hair on her body standing up. "A woman with the pack…" he let out a loud throaty laugh. The cave erupted into a chorus of the Goblins laughs altogether at once.

"What are you doing in these paths?" the Goblin King spoke. Estrein was pushed forwards and onto her knees by one of the goblins. Her fingers, merely inches away from the bow that lay beside her. Her bow. "Speak" he demanded.  
Silence followed. Estrein only dared turn her head slightly, the corner of her eye glimpsing her group of dwarves. "Very well, if they will not talk, well make them squak! Bring out the wrangler, bring out the bone breaker! Start with the woman!"  
She wished to scream and run. The goblins moved forwards, their greedy and long bony fingers grabbing her arms tightly, enough to let out a pitiful squeak from her lips.

"WAIT!"

The voice was unmistakably Thorins. Estrein closed her eyes, willing to wish the fingers to let her skinny arms go. She turned her eyes to look behind her, watching as the dwarf prince stepped from behind his comrades. His eyes momentarily met hers, and for a brief second Estrein thought she could see concern flash inside them.  
"Well well well, look who it is" The Goblin King spoke. His henchmen released Estreins arms, and moved to the sides avoiding Thorin as he stepped forward and settled beside the white haired girl. "Thorin, son of Thrair son of Thror. King under the mountain. Oh wait, I have forgotten, you have no mountain" the ugly Goblin sneered. "And you're not a king. Which makes you, nobody really…"

Estrein felt anger boil inside her. Her eyes glared upwards, and her fingers itched to grab for the wooden weapon lying beside her. "I happen to know someone, who would pay a pretty price for your head. Just the head, nothing attached" the Goblin King laughed.

"Azog the defiler is dead" Thorin muttered lowly.  
"Is he now? Send out a message to the pale orc, I have found his prize" The Goblin King spoke to a smaller orc at his side.

It seemed a little like a nightmare. Estrein closed her eyes many times, praying from time to time that when she opened them again, she would be back in Rivendell safe and sound with her brother somewhere in the house, making friends with elves and learning how to fend for himself. But when she opened her eyes again, she was still in the same old cave with the Goblins. Her friends were pushed around, dropped to the hard rock ground and whipped, and she herself had her long white hair pulled in every direction.

" _Bones will be shattered you'll be eaten-_ " The Goblin Kings frightening song was cut short by his blood curdling scream. "I know that sword! It is the Goblin Cleaver" he yelled, pointing at a weapon at Thorins feet.  
What happened next, Estrein would never be able to recall. She remembered the ai and the scream which left her when the Goblins began to whip them even harder. But then she remembered a bright, piercing flash of blue. Unblocking her eyes from the view, Estreins eyes fell upon the wizard.

"Take up arm" he spoke, his voice rugged and old. "Fight, fight!"

The girl grabbed her bow and quiver. Fixing an arrow into the string as she stood up, running forward following Gandalf. She could hear the struggles of the other dwarves, and the screams of glee ad outrage of the goblins as they chased after them. Only the goblins were much faster and soon enough they were right on the party's tail.  
Turning around, Estrein let her arrow loose. It flew, straight over the heads of the dwarves and into, and through, the head of one of the goblins connected his partner with him. The enemies fell to their feet. "That should stall them, come on now Estrein" Gandalf murmured, beckoning for the half elf girl to follow.

The mountain was a maze through the darkness. The dwarves and Estrein were guided by the dim light which came from Gandalfs staff. A pale blue bulb of hope amidst the darkness. For the most part, running away became a blur. Goblins flew from the bridge, left and right with dreadful bloodcurdling shrieks. The path way seemed clear, and just in time for Estreins arrows had begun to run clear. Until; the Goblin King jumped down in front of them with a ground shaking thud.

"You thought you could escape me" he rumbled. His arm swung, and Gandalf stumbled back. The dwarves pushed him forwards back to his feet. Estrein looked behind her, her eyes meeting with the fleet of goblins that had gathered behind. "What are you going to do now, wizard?" Wrong words for such a confident foe it seemed. Gandalf's staff flew forwards an inch, meeting with the Kings eye. He howled in pain. A slash! And he fell to his knees. One more confident strike from Gandalf, and the Goblin King was down.

The platform shook. Estrein held out her arms, attempting for balance but to no good. The wood collapsed and their party was plummeting down into the very hearth of the mountain. She shrieked, feeling her skin acquire new marks, of the fall, not of the battle. But in that moment, it seemed that the fall was on their side. For they met with the ground with ease. Estrein helped herself out of the fallen bridge, spitting out a tuft of her dusty hair.

"Well that could've been worse." She wanted to laugh, at the light attempt of humor but also because she, and everyone else was alive. THUD! The heavy body of the Goblin King fell right on top of the party tangled in between the wooden floorboards. And maybe that's when she would have laughed, if only the noise of the army of Goblins did not distract her. Her hands felt for any new arrows, except her fingers fell short. None.

"GANDALF!" Kili yelled.  
"There's too many" Estrein breathed. "We can't fight them."  
"Only one thing will save us!" Gandalf yelled, his arms reaching for the nearest dwarf to help him to his feet. "Daylight!"

"RUN!" Estrein yelled, her voice ringing across the cavern, drowned by the dozen of screaming goblins. And they ran, faster than before if it was possible. Estrein focused on her breathing. Felt a fire forming inside her mind. A blazing hot flame which egged her to move faster and faster and faster. The deafening roar of the Goblins at the back of her head. Her hand clutched her bow tighter. And suddenly. daylight! The freedom of the trees! The shining bright light of the sun! The half-elf sighed with joy. Safety!


End file.
